Step 4: Casting on the hat

Step 5: Finishing the hat

Continue knitting back and forth on the hat until it's the height you want. If you're feeling fancy, you can do some decreasing towards the top of th...

Use this free knitting pattern to make yourself a nifty (and warm!) bearded hat. It's simple once you know a few tricks, and it knits up in no time. You'll want to make one in every color for everyone you know! No longer will you suffer from beard envy or cold chins - now you can make your own beard hat!

Step 1: Materials and Patterns

I used some leftover bulky weight yarn (super soft and fuzzy, which is good since it's going on my face!) and some large knitting needles. This would have gone better with circular needles, but I'm a strong believer in "use what you got," so I did them on straight needles. If you're familiar with knitting in the round, it should be no trouble for you to translate this pattern into something simpler!

Step 2: Start simple

To boost excitement about this project (meaning: guarantee I'll actually finish it), I started with the smallest part: the mustache. It starts with one cast on stitch that is increased every other row to make the full part of the mustache. Then it is decreased and repeated. Simple!

This also makes a schmancy bow tie! I recommend wearing it while you're knitting up the rest of the hat.

Step 3: Casting on the beard

This is the first hurdle - the provisional cast-on. Since I haven't made a full Instructable on this just yet, I will refer you to the site I used to teach me! The pictures are perfect and it's easy to follow.

Try it out a couple of times until you get the hang of it. And yes, using a different color of yarn for this part DOES help.

Now that you've got that mastered, let's start knitting us a beard!
Follow the pattern for increases and decreases (you can fiddle with this bit to make a longer or shorter beard if you prefer). Now you've got the beard portion done and it's time to make the hat!

Hi there - I love this hat. I’m currently writing an article about bizarre, unusual and wonderful craft projects. I would love permission to publish this image, along with some text about the beard hat, and a link back to this article.

The article will be a slideshow of photos of unusual craft projects, and it is to complement an article we have about guerrilla knitting.: http://lifestyle.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8244625

You know what this hat needs? The loop stitch! That's how I make mine. I never knit hats with them, though; I just put an elastic strap on it so I can wear it with any hat, or with my snowboard helmet.